Written by Lori S. Stewart

Army WAC Vietnam veteran Pat Jernigan passed along this fascinating obituary of Doris “Lucki” Allen, written by Lori S. Stewart, Army historian at the U.S. Army Intelligence Center of Excellence (USAICE) at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. Lori wrote this for the USAICE newsletter for July 28-August 3, 2024.

Doris Allen was stationed at the Army Operations Center in Long Binh in late 1967 when she detected significant enemy activity indicating a large-scale offensive. Her intelligence identified a buildup of at least 50,000 enemy troops, possibly including Chinese reinforcements, and she predicted that the offensive would commence on January 31, 1968. She reported her findings to her superiors, urging them to disseminate the information and prepare for the anticipated attack. Despite her detailed analysis, Allen’s warnings were ignored. The higher command did not act on her report, and on January 30, 1968, the Tet Offensive began. The coordinated attacks by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces took American and South Vietnamese forces by surprise, resulting in substantial casualties and damage.

Pat posted this appreciation for Doris Allen on her online obituary webpage: “Lucki was an extraordinary soldier, a brilliant intelligence analyst, and a lovely human being. Despite infirmities she regularly attended Vietnam Women Veterans conferences. Sadly, she was unable to be with us in April. She had a long and industrious life full of accomplishments. We will remember her; and we will forever miss her warm friendship, wise counsel and unstinting support. Hand Salute! Rest in peace Chief! VR, Pat Jernigan”

Doris Allen arrives in Vietnam in 1967

Doris Allen passed away on June 11, 2024, in Oakland, California, at the age of 97. Her legacy is marked by her pivotal role in military intelligence and the lasting impact of her work, despite the challenges and biases she faced.

Doris “Lucki” Allen graduated from Tuskegee University with a degree in physical education but, in October 1950, she decided to enlist in the Women’s Army Corps. She spent the first thirteen years of her military career as an entertainment specialist and public information officer. In 1963, she completed French language training and became the first woman to attend the Army’s prisoner of war interrogation course. She then spent two years as the sole strategic intelligence analyst covering Latin American affairs at the U.S. Continental Army Command Intelligence Center, Fort Bragg (Fort Liberty since 2023).

In October 1967, at the age of forty, Spec. 7 Allen volunteered for service in Vietnam. She served first as the senior intelligence analyst at the Army Operations Center, 1st Logistical Command at Long Binh. In December, Allen, the only woman in the intelligence section, was convinced an attack by more than 50,000 enemy troops would take place on 31 January 1968. Assuming the Viet Cong were being reinforced, potentially by the Chinese, she drafted a report to that effect. Her supervisor, impressed with her analysis, directed her to take it to the Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV) J-2 in Saigon.

Her report was discounted and lumped in with other intelligence reports warning of a coming offensive of undetermined time and place. The Tet Offensive indeed occurred in late January 1968.

Allen’s warnings about other events saved lives. Her analysis of countless documents, both friendly and enemy, led to her conclusion the enemy had placed well over one hundred 122mm rockets around the Long Binh perimeter. When II Field Force investigated, nearly 120 such emplacements were destroyed by air strikes. Further, her report of the enemy’s use of 82mm chemical rounds, allowed forces in the Cua Viet area to avoid those that fell, saving the lives of more than one hundred Marines.

In the spring of 1970, Allen was appointed a warrant officer and, in March, she moved to Saigon to oversee the Translation Branch of the Combined Document Exploitation Center, where she supervised forty South Vietnamese nationals employed to translate captured documents. She redeployed in September 1970, having been awarded three Bronze Stars for her thirty-six consecutive months in Vietnam.

Back in the U.S. WO1 Allen served as an interrogation instructor at the Army Intelligence School at Fort Holabird, Maryland. She moved with the school in 1971 to Fort Huachuca, Arizona. After completing the counterintelligence transition course, WO1 Allen returned to the Defense Language Institute for the German language course.

After an assignment with the intelligence unit at the Presidio of San Francisco, CWO2 Allen went to Germany as a special agent with the 527th MI Brigade. In 1977, she reported to the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command Counterintelligence and Signal Security Battalion, Presidio of San Francisco, where she worked as the senior counterintelligence agent and security manager. While at the Presidio, Allen was promoted to chief warrant officer three in 1978. CWO3 Allen retired in 1980 after a thirty-year distinguished career.

CWO3 Lucki Allen was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009. She is also the namesake of the U.S. Army Warrant Officer Career College’s Distinguished Honor Graduate Award.